For some of my fellow countrymen, the pinnacle of Canadian rock is The Tragically Hip. So tied to the country is this band, that one of our national papers joked (with more than a small sense of truth) that in order to spend the most Canadian of Canada Days, you could catch The 'Hip playing in Saskatoon on July 1st. Me? I don't care for them, never have, very sure I never will. So I'll celebrate Canada Day with you in my own way.
Sloan is my pinnacle of Canadian (indie) rock. First discovered by David Geffen in the height of grunge fever, these Nova Scotians were signed to the influential American label and heralded as the new Nirvana. While their first album featured that grunge drone sound, by the time they got to their second album, Twice Removed, the pop was winning out. Geffen dropped them because they didn't know what to do with them, which lead the band back home to revive their own indie label, murderecords. One Chord To Another, their third album, was the first directed straight at the Canadian cognoscenti of indie pop, and one of my favourite Canadian albums of all time.Sloan "Everything You've Done Wrong"
+Sloan +official + Myspace +more mp3s +buy Sloan here
Owen Pallett has had his hand in many of Canadian modern music's finest moments over the last few years, but I'm particularly smitten with Has A Good Home, the album he released under the name Final Fantasy. His ability to make a violin sound like so much more than just a violin is amazing, and he brings a certain unique Canadiana to his music that is subtle and individual. He doesn't play it to the masses, but he doesn't play it down. There should be a new Final Fantasy album in the works for later this year, and I'm looking forward to it.Final Fantasy "The CN Tower Belongs to the Dead"
+Final Fantasy + official? +more mp3s +buy Final Fantasy here
The Dears took me aback when I heard them, because they sounded so un-Canadian that I was sure they were British. When I found out they were from Montreal, after having already fallen in love with them, I came to realize that their British sound actually made them more Canadian. Like many artists before them, The Dears were a Canadian band that absorbed the influence and style of nations around the world and infused their own personalities and style into the music. Another fine example of the Canadian cultural mosaic, and one of the finest albums by a Canadian band released last year.The Dears "Ticket To Immortality"
+The Dears +official +Myspace +more mp3s +buy The Dears here
The Hidden Cameras once named an album after Mississauga, the swollen suburb of Toronto, and sing about sex involving urination and gay liberation the way only a Canadian can. In honour of Canada's same-sex marriage laws, and one of the biggest pride celebration in the world, and the country's birthday, and the songwriting genius of Joel Gibb (no relation to Andy, Barry, and the other ones), and to round out this week's 4 for the weekend picks...The Hidden Cameras "Golden Streams"
+The Hidden Cameras +official +Myspace +more mp3s +buy The Hidden Cameras here
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